Public-safety agencies and city governments across the Valley agreed this week to merge the two radio cooperatives that oversee emergency communications in the region.

The merger was hailed by a top official of a statewide firefighters association, who said that radio problems complicated the fight against the Yarnell Hill Fire and that the Valley’s merger could pave the way for a statewide emergency radio network.

It was a victory for firefighters who have lobbied for years for a unified radio system across the Valley, complaining that in some cases they’ve had to carry two radios into blazing buildings.

The split radio system has not resulted in any firefighter deaths or injuries. But Bryan Jeffries, executive vice president of the 6,000-member Professional Fire Fighters of Arizona, said it illustrates a problem that emerged dramatically during this year’s disastrous Yarnell Hill Fire.

Jeffries, a Mesa fire captain and a former Phoenix City Council member, said he and others were assigned to man fire stations during the blaze, which killed 19 members of Prescott’s Granite Mountain Hotshots team.

“The greatest challenge we faced was not getting people up there,” Jeffries said.

But as about 70 agencies poured equipment and personnel into the fire zone, he said, “the biggest challenge we had was radios, getting people to communicate with the various radio systems they were coming up there with and all the programs and all the interoperability that did not exist.”

This week’s merger agreement by the two radio cooperatives will be a big step, Jeffries said, toward creating a statewide emergency radio network over time.

First, though, the two networks will have to figure out the exact shape of the entity that will emerge from the agreement.

Even as the groups voted to merge, some expressed concern that the result could be layers of bureaucracy and additional public expense.

One network, led by Phoenix, is called the Regional Wireless Cooperative. It is by far the larger, extending from the Anthem area to Sun Lakes and from the far West Valley to Tempe, Scottsdale and Fountain Hills.

The other, led by Mesa, is called the Topaz Regional Wireless Cooperative and includes Apache Junction, Gilbert, Queen Creek and Rio Verde.

Each cooperative is in charge of its own infrastructure, which includes radio towers and computerized dispatch-center equipment.

In most cases, communication between the two is not a problem. But they use different radio systems in hot zones, so when units from the Phoenix co-op roll into Topaz territory to help fight fires, Phoenix has to send extra people to coordinate communications, and some firefighters have to carry two radios.

Topaz was formed several years ago after earlier efforts to create a Valley-wide system fell through, largely because of squabbles over asset control and governance. Mesa Vice Mayor Alex Finter has referred to the split as a “bitter divorce.”

Efforts to reconcile have been under way for at least a year. The co-ops formed two joint committees, one to examine governance issues and one to consider technical aspects. In the meantime, the Mesa cooperative agreed to deploy the same radio system as Phoenix on fire calls.

The governance committee said the groups should establish a separate governing authority to oversee the merged networks.

Ed Zuercher, assistant Phoenix city manager, said that authority could resemble Valley Metro, which oversees the region’s bus and light-rail systems. It could get expensive, he said.

Mesa Fire Chief Harry Beck said a standalone authority would have more legal permanence than a less formal joint-governance agreement.

“Unless we have a fairly secure set of guidelines and bylaws and rules, the process could be difficult to manage at best,” Beck said.

He admitted that “there are going to be some startup costs, most likely,” but he said the ultimate aim is “a much better-performing system.”

John Pombier, a deputy city manager in Mesa, said further research will lead the co-ops to determine the most logical way of organizing.

“We’re moving in the right direction with the understanding that this really is about safety, user safety,” Pombier said. “Nobody in this room seems to disagree that we want to unify. It’s just about how to do that.”

Jeffries’ tone this week was far different from when he addressed a Mesa City Council committee early this year, demanding that the radio systems be unified.

Shortly after his appearance, firefighters from 10 agencies in the Phoenix co-op threatened to sue Topaz if the differing radio setups caused death or injury to a firefighter.

The merger, Jeffries said, creates “the real opportunity to move beyond, throughout the state of Arizona, so we can all communicate in our greatest times of need.”

“Jeffries hit the nail on the head,” said David Felix, executive director of the Phoenix co-op. “Police, firefighters and taxpayers are on the winning end of this.”

Posting a comment to our website allows you to join in on the conversation. Share your story and unique perspective with members of the azcentral.com community.

Comments posted via facebook:

► Join the Discussion

Join the conversation! To comment on azcentral.com, you must be logged into an active personal account on Facebook. You are responsible for your comments and abuse of this privilege will not be tolerated. We reserve the right, without warning or notification, to remove comments and block users judged to violate our Terms of Service and Rules of Engagement. Facebook comments FAQ

Join thousands of azcentral.com fans on Facebook and get the day's most popular and talked-about Valley news, sports, entertainment and more - right in your newsfeed. You'll see what others are saying about the hot topics of the day.